Air cleaner



July 9, 1929.

AIR CLEANER Filed May l, 1925 NVENTOR. Gordon Ho o Z-On iQ By l ATTORNEY.

Patented July 9, 1929.

- UNITED STATES GORDON EOOTON, OF GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN.

A1B CLEANER.

Application filed May 1,

The present invention relates to air cleaners; and its object is, generally, to provide improved means for cleaning air; and more particularly, to provide an improved device for removing dust and dirt particles from the air passing into the carburetor of an internal- -combustion engine.

This and any other objects hereinafter appearing are attained by, and the invention iinds preferable embodiment'in, the structure hereinafter particularly described in the body of this specification and illustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Figure 1 is a view in perspective of m'y air cleaning device applied to the intake of the carburetor of an automobiles internalcombustion engine', a side wall of the device being broken away;

Figure 2 is a transverse sectional view of said device taken on line 2-2 of, Figure l;

Figure 3 is a sectional view (much enlarged), taken on line 3-3 of Figure l, of a fastener for connecting side portions of the device;

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view (much enlarged) of a portion of one of the vanes f the device showing means for spacing the vanes apart; and

Fig. 5 is a side view of the device showing the same provided with air-heating means.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated by the drawings, my air cleaning device comprises a box or casing, designated generally 1, having top and bottom walls 2 and 3, side walls 4, and an air passage through the casing extending from its air inlet 5 at its front to its air outlet i at its rear. A plurality of parallelly disposed` verticallyspaced vanes 7 in the casing extend between said inlet and outlet, first downwardly and then upwardly, being cross-sectionally downwardly concavo-convex in planes parallel with the side walls 4 of the casing.

This box or casing 1 desirably comprises separate lateral portions orl halves 8, 9, each having one side wall 4 of the casing, an inwardly-extending front flange 10 adjacent said air inlet and an inwardly-extending rear flange 11 adjacent said air outlet, terminating in a cross-sectionally-arcuate half neck l2, the front flanges l() being laterally spaced and the rear flanges 11 being also laterally spaced to provide said inlet and outlet respectively.

In the assembledposition of the parts-- 1925. Serial No. 27,807.

shown in Figures 1 and 2, the half necks 12, 12 embrace between them the pipe 13 leading 'to the carburetor 21 of the engine, and are removably held, for mounting the device", on said pipe by suitable means as the collar 14 clamped in place by the screw 15. The vanes 7 are held in parallel spaced relation by their projections v16 preferably formed by striking down a portion of the vanes as illustrated in Figure 4. These vanes are preferably formed of thin sheet? metal and are sprung into their concavo-convex shape by being' inserted into the separated halves or portions 8, 9 of the casing, their front and rear edges 17, 18 being held in said shape between the front flanges l0, 10 and rear flanges 11, 11 of the casing, and the side edges 19, 20 of the vanes beiIg retained in place between the casings side walls 4, 4.

Means, such as the clips 22, additionally to the collar 14, may be employed for detachably connecting the halves or portions 8, 9 of the casing together. p

A suitable liquid, preferably oil, is held in the concave vanes 7 as indicated at 23 in Figure 1 to engage and hold dust and dirt Dparticles carried by the air passing through the device; It will be seen that the air and such particles in being thus drawn through the device pass both by gravitation and centrifugal force into contact with the surface of the oil and said particles yare engaged and held thereby.

` These vanes are desirably made of a material having roughene'd or scaly surface (such as hot-rolled iron or steel), so that the oil may spread upwardly in a film by capillary action`along-the surface of the vanes, thus coating such surface more or less thoroughly throughout.

The air drawn into and through the device may rst be heated as by passing through the sleeve 24 surrounding and spaced from 'the engines exhaust pipe 25, this sleeve venting into the air inlet 5 of the device, as indicated in Figure 5. It will be seen that the halves or portions 8, 9 of the casing may be disconnectedand the vanes 7 removed for cleaning; although, if desired, the casing may comprise parts permanently connected, in which -case A the vanes may be cleaned by gasoline or the .like poured between them. The vanes desirably have upwardly-extending flanges 3() 'at their side edges 19, 20 to conne the oil.

A prominent feature of the present invention is the provision of a surface coated with oil or other substance adapted to engage and hold the dust and dirt Vparticles carried by an air-stream contacting such surface; and

therefore in the inventions broadest aspect,

such a coated surface may be disposed in various positions-uprightly as well as substantially horizontally. The particles-engaging substance is desirably of a character which will not only engage and hold such bodiment thereof illustrated by the drawings or hereinbefore described.

I claim: A

l. In a devicefof the character described: a casing comprising top and bottom walls and side walls having mutually-approaching spaced front flanges and mutually-approaching spaced rear flanges; a plurality of parallelly disposed vertically-spaced vanes in the casing downwardly concavo-'conveX in planes parallel with the side .walls and adapted to contain a liquid, the front and rear edges of the vanes being held between the front and rear flanges and the vanes side edges being held between the sidewalls. o

2. In a device of the character described: a casing comprising top and bottom walls and detachably connected side walls having mutually-approaching spaced front flanges and inutually-approaching spaced rear flanges; a plurality of -parallelly disposed verticallyspaced vanes in the casing downwardly conv cavo-convex in planes parallel with the side walls andadapted to contain a liquid, the

front and rear edges of the vanes being held between the front and rear flanges and the vales side edges being held between -the side wa s.

3. In a device of the lcharacter described: a casing comprising separate lateral portions eachhaving one side wall of the casing, an inwardly-extending front flange and an inwardly-eXtending rear flange terminating in a cross sectionally arcuate half neck, the flanges of said assembled portions being laterally spaced; a plurality of parallelly disposed vertically-spaced vanes in the casing downwardly concave-convex in planes parallel with the side walls and adapted to contain a liquid, the front and rear edges of the vanes being held between the front flanges and the rear flanges respectively and the vanes side edges being held between the side walls; Y

means surrounding the half necks in the assembled position of the parts for detachably holding them together.

4. In a device of the character described: a casing -comprising separate lateral portions each hav-ing one side wall o the casing, an inwardly-extending front ffange and an inwardly-extending rear flange terminating in a cross sectionally arcuate half neck, the

flanges of said assembled portions being laterally spaced; a plurality of parallelly disposed vertically-spaced vanes in the casing downwardly concavo-convex in planes parallel with the side walls and adapted to contain a liquid, the front and rear edges of the vanes being held between the front anges and the rear flanges respectively and the vanes side edges beinfr held between the side walls; means for 2:lletachably connecting the half necks to hold the parts together.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand at Grand Rapids, Michigan, this 23rd day of April, 1925.

,GORDON HooToN. 

